Changing the Conversation About Aging

Changing the conversation about aging including working on accepting the little signs of aging and being happy with yourself through these stages.

Recently, my husband Troy and I got onto the topic about aging. We aren't in our 20's anymore and each of us have noticed little signs of aging on ourselves. I have noticed a decent amount of grey hair on myself, little wrinkles and everything looking a little bit more saggy than it did 10 years ago. He has a decent amount of grey hair as well but on his nice Mexican skin, I haven't seen any wrinkles despite him being 5 1/2 years older than me (what's up with that??). 

Our conversation was a very positive one! We talked about how as a society, we are taught to fight signs of aging as hard as we can. We are taught to buy super expensive skin creams, to look into plastic surgery, to feel bad about these natural changes that happen to our bodies. But why? Why do we let society tell us how to look and most importantly, how to feel about the way that we look? 

Hey, hey grey hair!

I think about what if we were taught that fine lines on your face were beautiful? That they mean that you have gone through a lifetime of experiences instead of just that you look "old"? I am still going to dye my hair because it does make me feel better and I am certainly not saying that you can't do things to improve the way you look, especially if it helps with your self-confidence.

I just urge you to look at WHY you may feel the way that you do about aging? Everything I know and feel about aging is because of what society has taught me to feel. What a lousy thing! If we could just change the conversation about aging and help people to feel normal about these changes that happen to their bodies, what an amazing thing that would be!

Besides major plastic surgery, we can't really stop signs of aging so what a beautiful thing it would be to accept it. With my passion for health, I believe in eating healthy foods (fruit, vegetables, lean protein, lots of whole grains, beans, dairy products), drinking lots of water and exercising. I think that if you are doing this things as you age, you should feel good about how you are taking care of your body.

I'm not to the point of having hormonal changes due to aging yet (I'm 31) so I can't speak to how I will feel about that but things like hormonal changes and menopause are part of life as a woman so I plan to embrace that the same way. I recently learned a lot at the roundtable on beauty and aging, brought to you by SeeMe Beauty and Disrupt AgingⓇ. It talked all about aging and how as women, we go through all of these parts of aging and it is NORMAL and nothing to be ashamed of. So helpful to hear this coming from a smart group of women.

I think that part of the way I feel the way I do is because I have a supportive husband who loves me for who I am. It isn't based on if I am super dressed up with a face full of makeup. Troy is supportive of me no matter how I look and for that, I am so grateful.

I think back to being pregnant with my 3 kids and each time, I felt really good about my body because I knew what to expect- at least 25-35 pounds of weight gain, weight gained not just in my belly but throughout my body, etc. Then to compare it to aging, we know certain things to expect as we age but we don't embrace it. If we as a society could accept the little signs of aging, what would that do for our self-esteem?

This post is made possible with support from AARP’s Disrupt AgingⓇ. All opinions are my own.